They pay for it with other things in addition to higher taxes. They also pay for it with lower economic growth because of less risk taking.
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That’s the UK system. Everyone qualifies for National Health and the wealthiest 10% of the population typically have employer-provided BUPA that covers private hospitals and doctors.
intercst
Not quite…depending on what “more advanced care” means, I guess.
I’d consider the surgery my husband had, and Wendy’s about to, as being pretty darn “advanced”…but it’d also be considered Standard of Care and would need to be performed in an NHS hospital (possibly the one where the procedure was pioneered) Granted, after the initial period in cardio thoracic ICU and a single room (equipment and initial nursing care is VERY noisy) BUPA or any of the other insurance supplements would pay for a private room if that wasn’t on the agenda … but so would your personal bank account, come to that.
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If you read the article to the end , you see that it is largely focused on an increasingly sick population being treated in an emergency room setting. Regardless of the socialist/capitalist nature of the emergency room, there is a large and growing population of people of all ages with large and increasing levels of obesity, L2 diabetes, drug and alcohol and sugar addictions, whose lives are being extended by more and longer er visits that do not deal with the underlying causes.
My solution, if I were king, would be decried as Socialist. I would stop subsidizing hfcs. I don’t know what I would do about the overwhelming supply of ultra processed foods and sodas that are addicting and turning our children into increasingly sick, obese, diabetic and cancerous adults.
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Meet your new 24/7 hector. I remember him bellowing when California wanted to take soda pop machines out of public schools.
How about add them to the “sin tax club”?
We tax cigarettes and alcohol due to health costs caused by these products.
Put a tax on the ultra processed foods and on sodas that is equivalent to the taxes on cigarettes and alcohol?
ralph
Hmm. There are emojis for these “sin” products!
And 
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Re: more advanced care
Insurance companies do this all the time. They do not cover everything. They have a detailed list of procedures they cover.
What should be on the list is a subject of endless discussion. Such as weight loss drugs.
Choices do impact costs and rates.
Re: HFCS
Some areas already have extra taxes on unhealthy products like sugary drinks and candy. Extra tax increases cost, deters consumption, and generates funds to support healthy living programs.
In NJ food at the grocery store is free of sales taxes. But candy and soft drinks do pay. So do restaurant bills.
Remember $3/pack cigarettes. Not difficult. Requires will power in state legislature.
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That’s a pretty regressive approach. To the extent that those things are ‘addictive’, the tax will be mostly paid by the poor.
It costs more to eat healthy foods. Especially organic.
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Do they? A detailed list of care that’s likely tonbe denied to any would be beneficiary should they be seduced by the enthusiastic marketing? I don’t believe they do.
Even when such events happen and are publicized, it doesn’t seem to have an impact on the consumer. Ask anyone who signs up for Medicare Advantage…and why they fall for the Siren Song of low up front cost. I’ve never heard anyone plausibly claim that the list of excluded procedures aren’t going to affect them (because they know they won’t get sick from XYZ or whatever) so they don’t need to worry. Most MA beneficiaries expect to receive the same care in the same timely manner as, say those with traditional Medicare, if they’re honest with themselves.
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Most states have regressive tax structures. A piece posted here some weeks ago, showed that iirc 42 of the 50 states have regressive tax structures. iirc, Michigan ranked in the 30s somewhere. #1 most regressive state was Florida.
Steve
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Re: Treatments not covered
I think we know very well some procedures are not covered by most health insurance. Especially new experimental treatments. And I suspect cosmetic surgery of many types.
This is nothing new. Yes, some are concerned about being denied coverage. Physicians employ experts to negotiate with insurance companies. How to list a procedure to get it covered. etc etc.
Those who find their treatment excluded are always unhappy about it. Especially when its a life saving treatment. (But might be effective has to be problematic.) Cosmetic surgery? Does it matter? Breast replacement after mastectomy is probably covered most of the time.
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visits that do not deal with the underlying causes
visits that do not deal with the underlying causes
visits that do not deal with the underlying causes
visits that do not deal with the underlying causes
Worth repeating!
Do what I do, don’t buy them, don’t eat them. That saves lots of money, not on the so called food but on the consequences of eating the crap, medical bills.
The Captain
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Corn and soy are the bedrock of American agriculture. We’ll all be on GLP-1 drugs before that happens.
intercst
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Of course. But that’s an individual solution (and a rational, enlightened one at that).
The issue is how to establish a macroeconomic policy that encourages that for all people.
Seems insolvable to me.
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Unfortunately, yes. Too many giga-interests, starting with farmers, the agro-industrial food complex, pharma, insurance, and so on. The only viable solution is grass roots. There are lots of people making a living preaching the low carb mantra and related topics.
I think I made my last doctor take it seriously. After explaining my situation to him he confided that he had heard about a doctor (Gundry?) who claimed to help reverse obesity and related maladies. I guess I was the first patient he saw that had done it. Many if not most of the doctors who are preaching the low carb diet had become grossly obese and started by experimenting on themselves.
Charity starts at home?
The Captain
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I don’t know how much soy sauce you consume, but the major use of corn is to feed pigs (mostly in China). Not a close relationship to GLP drugs.
DB2
The article highlights a growing crisis in healthcare, where doctors are facing increasingly fragile patients—dubbed—who require complex and costly care. 
Chronic illnesses, mental health issues, and obesity are pushing hospital systems to the brink, as they struggle to manage a patient population that can’t stay out of care for long. 
The burden is not just on medical resources but also on social systems, as many of these individuals lack safe homes or financial support. This trend is only expected to worsen with younger populations developing chronic conditions.
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Reducing US health care costs with the existing system doesn’t seem hard to me, as long as one is willing to be politically incorrect.
I have had the good fortune of being able to do a fair amount of international travel. One consistent observation is that everyone walks more than Americans. Have yet to find an exception. And it is not just for exercise. Walking for most outside America is just part of daily life. An example:
For many Americans, the most walking they do is wandering the aisles of CostCo as they stock up on a month’s supply of processed food, soda, and giant jars of cheese puffs and peanut butter pretzels. This requires waddling into a giant SUV and a 20 mile drive on the turnpike to a gigantic parking lot crowded with other SUVs and pickups. In comparison, the folks in Paris, Kyoto, and Shanghai stroll every couple of days to the local grocery to buy a couple of meals worth of fresh foods. The community habit of walking creates a need for small local markets, shops, and cafes. It is self reinforcing.
As the OP link suggests, a big reason Americans pay more for healthcare is because Americans choose lifestyles and diets that are unhealthy. Until that changes, it doesn’t matter the health care system.
Such change can happen in America by economic persuasion. Establish a system of significantly reduced health care costs for Americans who are not overweight. Cut the price of Viagra in half for men at normal weight as just one example. Further reduce co-pays and health care charges for those who voluntarily take and pass a drug test twice a year. Stuff like that. Increase the tax on processed foods and use the revenues to subsidize the costs of organic vegetables. Economic carrots for those who adopt healthy behaviors, economic sticks for those who choose otherwise.
Simple.
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It seems that I’m the only one trusting the home remedy, eating right.
The Captain
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